Shortly after the conclusion of the high-profile legal battle with OpenAI, Elon Musk has swiftly moved forward with the initial public offering (IPO) plans for SpaceX. It's worth noting that Musk's lawsuit was dismissed by the court, which ruled that the claims were filed past the statute of limitations.
Undeterred by the legal setback, Musk has promptly submitted the IPO prospectus for SpaceX. According to the filing, SpaceX plans to list on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "SPCX," aiming to raise up to $75 billion with a valuation exceeding $2 trillion. If approved, this would surpass the record set by Saudi Aramco in 2019, which raised $29.4 billion.
In response to Musk's aggressive move, OpenAI is reportedly accelerating its own IPO plans. Sources indicate that OpenAI intends to confidentially file for its IPO within the coming days or weeks, aiming to proceed as quickly as possible.
The ongoing rivalry between Musk and OpenAI continues to unfold, with both companies now racing toward public listings.
**A Glimpse into SpaceX's Operations**
The prospectus provides a detailed look into SpaceX's financial and operational structure. It is important to note that while the filing is under SpaceX's name, the financial statements reflect a consolidated report encompassing SpaceX, xAI, and X, as these entities operate under common control.
Key highlights from the filing include:
- **Financial Performance:** SpaceX's core rocket launch business remains a loss-making segment, with the space division reporting revenue of $4.086 billion in 2025 but an operating loss of $657 million. The Starship project alone incurred $3 billion in R&D expenses during the year. - **Star Performer:** The satellite communications business, Starlink, emerged as the primary revenue driver, generating $11.387 billion in revenue in 2025 with an operating profit of $4.423 billion. This represents a 49.8% year-over-year revenue growth and a staggering 120.4% surge in operating profit. - **AI Division:** The AI segment, which includes AI computing, Grok, and the integrated X platform, reported revenue of $3.201 billion in 2025 but recorded a substantial loss of $6.355 billion. Expenditures related to AI reached $12.727 billion in 2025 and soared to $7.723 billion in the first quarter of 2026 alone.
In essence, the profitable satellite communications business is currently subsidizing the capital-intensive rocket and AI divisions.
**Governance Structure and Control**
The prospectus also details a dual-class share structure that consolidates significant voting power with Elon Musk. While Class A shares carry one vote per share, Class B shares carry ten votes per share, and Musk holds a majority of the Class B shares. This structure grants him approximately 85.1% of the voting rights, as cited by multiple media reports based on the filing.
Furthermore, Class B shareholders have the right to elect a majority of the board of directors. Consequently, post-IPO, SpaceX will be classified as a "controlled company" on Nasdaq, exempting it from certain governance requirements, such as mandating that a majority of the board be independent directors.
**Surprise Deal with Anthropic**
A notable revelation in the filing is a recently announced cloud services agreement with Anthropic. Under this deal, Anthropic will pay SpaceX $1.25 billion per month for access to computing power from the Colossus and Colossus II data centers, extending through May 2029. This translates to an annual revenue of $15 billion from a single client, significantly boosting SpaceX's current annual revenue of approximately $18 billion.
The prospectus refers to this strategy of developing in-house AI models while leasing excess computing capacity to competitors as a "dual monetization strategy."
**Acquisition Option for Cursor**
The filing also confirms a previously rumored deal with Cursor. Beyond a computing power partnership, the agreement signed in April includes an option for SpaceX to acquire Cursor at an implied valuation of around $60 billion, with payment to be made in SpaceX Class A shares. Reports suggest SpaceX may proceed with this acquisition within 30 days of its IPO. Should SpaceX withdraw from the deal, it would be liable to pay Cursor a $1.5 billion breakup fee plus $8.5 billion in deferred service fees.
**OpenAI's Countermove**
On the other side, OpenAI is not standing still. Following the dismissal of Musk's lawsuit, the company is pushing forward with its IPO plans. CEO Sam Altman is reportedly aiming for a listing before September and has enlisted Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to lead the offering. The swift transition from legal victory to IPO preparation underscores the urgency, as it removes a perceived obstacle to its public listing.
OpenAI's recent valuation stands at $852 billion, supported by $122 billion in committed funding. The company claims a monthly revenue run rate of approximately $2 billion, positioning it as a major global player.
**The 2026 AI IPO Wave**
The stage is set for a potential wave of major AI company listings in 2026. SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic—three of the most prominent AI firms—are all on track to go public around the same time. This could absorb a significant portion of global IPO market capacity. While SpaceX has laid its cards on the table and OpenAI is in close pursuit, Anthropic finds itself both a client of SpaceX and a contender in the IPO race.
An unresolved lawsuit has inadvertently triggered the starting gun for this AI IPO surge. The race is now on to see which company will cross the finish line first and how they will perform in the public markets.
**One More Thing**
In a departure from typical dry financial documents, SpaceX's prospectus reads more like a visionary manifesto. It opens with a quote from Musk, is filled with stunning imagery of rockets and space, and formally includes ambitious goals like "building cities on the Moon and Mars" and "advancing humanity toward a Kardashev Type II civilization."
The Total Addressable Market (TAM) section presents a staggering figure of $28.5 trillion, with AI alone accounting for $26.5 trillion of that. It's an IPO filing that doubles as a science fiction declaration to investors.
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